Bengaluru: Former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa seems to be torn between his kin and his supporters on the issue of merger of Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) with BJP ahead of next year’s elections to Lok Sabha.
Sources close to the Lingayat strongman’s family said the leader’s sons and daughters were keen on the merger despite pressure from his aides and supporters, including former minister Shobha Karandlaje, that the party should retain its identity and strike a pre-poll alliance with BJP.
His kin were concerned about the political career of his elder son and MP B.Y. Raghavendra. Besides, they were certain that it would be difficult to run the regional outfit till the next elections to the Assembly.
The meteoric rise of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in national politics was another factor which prompted Yeddyurappa’s kin to press for merger of his party with BJP. They have prevailed upon him not to heed to the advice of Ms Karandlaje and other supporters who were opposed to the idea of merging KJP with BJP.
Yeddy sons want KJP to merge with BJP
The party’s poor performance in the recent elections to the Legislative Assembly forced B.S. Yeddyurappa’s kin to suggest a merger. They also requested him not to heed to the advice of Shobha Karandlaje or other supporters who were opposed to the idea of the merger
Bengaluru: Will former chief minister B.S.Yeddyurappa give in to pressure from his kin to merge Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) with BJP ahead of next year’s elections to Lok Sabha?
Sources close to the Lingayat strongman’s family told Deccan Chronicle that the leader’s sons and daughters were keen on the merger not withstanding pressure from his aides and supporters, including former minister Shobha Karandlaje, that the party should retain its identity and forge a seat-sharing pact with BJP.
The sources said the former chief minister’s daughter Ms. Umadevi and sons— B.Y. Raghavendra and B.Y. Vijayendra—reportedly told their father to merge his party with BJP after negotiating about a good position for himself with central leaders of that party.
The party’s poor performance in the recent elections to the Legislative Assembly forced his kin to suggest a merger. Besides, they were concerned about the political career of Raghavendra.
“Without power, running a regional party till the next Assembly elections is very difficult. Besides, there is no scope for regional parties in Karnataka,” the sources added. The meteoric rise of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in national politics was another factor which prompted Yeddyurappa’s kin to suggest merger of his party with BJP.
They also requested him not to heed to the advice of Ms Shobha Karandlaje or other supporters who were opposed to the idea of merging KJP with BJP.
At a recent meeting convened by Yeddyurappa in Bengaluru, Shobha Karandlaje and others advocated a seat-sharing arrangement with BJP instead of a merger. The former energy minister insisted that the leader should retain the identity of KJP before negotiating a pre-poll pact with the BJP.